Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh: “From a young age, women struggle to be themselves in the office,” said S*, an assistant vice president in a multinational bank. “If you don't wear makeup, male colleagues comment about your appearance. If you do wear makeup, they judge you for spending time on your looks instead of working."

S* is a 43-year-old tall and determined woman living with her husband and son in Bangalore. With around 20 years in the thriving information technology sector, she is among the few women in India to have occupied a leadership position.

Women are increasingly visible in both formal and informal workspaces, with their labour force participation rate in 2023 jumping to 37% from 32.8% the previous year. 

In corporate India, women did better than ever  before. In March 2023, job openings for women in the white-collar sector saw a 35% year-on-year spike.

According to a May 2024 report by LinkedIn and The Quantum Hub, a Delhi-based consulting firm that aims to inform public policy deliberations, women's overall workforce participation in corporate India grew from 23.9% in 2016 to 26.8% in 2024.

Despite this increase, few management roles are held by women. The report, ‘Women in leadership in corporate India’, based on data from 100 million LinkedIn users, revealed that only 18.3% of  senior leadership positions (managerial levels and above) were held by women in 2024. While women constitute 28.7% of the workforce at the entry level, this figure drops sharply to 18.5% at the managerial level.

This disparity persists despite significant educational qualifications. The department of economic affairs’ 2024 economic review notes that the female enrolment rate in higher education quadrupled over the past 20 years. Yet this is not reflected in the upper echelon of the job market. 

With so many women pursuing higher education and entering the workforce, the question arises: what stops their progress up the corporate ladder and what are the systemic changes needed to address this?

The Leaky Pipeline: A Persistent Issue

According to the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap report 2024, economic parity for women in India has improved but remains below the 2012 peak of 46%. Closing this gap requires addressing disparities in earned income, legislative and management roles, and professional and technical jobs.

The phenomenon of reducing women’s participation at the leadership level is often referred to as a ‘leaky pipeline.’ While women are relatively well-represented at entry and senior independent contributor levels, they experience a significant drop-off as they advance into higher positions of leadership.

The study by LinkedIn and The Quantum Hub identified female representation in leadership roles to be highest in industries such as education. 

Industries with moderate female representation (defined as 15-20% by the study) in leadership roles include accommodation and food services (15%) and sectors like financial services, retail, and media (each at 19%). 

Laws on Gender Inclusivity Ignored 

Between April 2018 and January 2024, stock exchanges levied fines totalling ₹27 crore for companies not appointing at least one woman director to their boards. 

The ministry of corporate affairs said that 506 companies were fined in that period, in an answer to a question raised in the parliament.

The number of non-compliant companies indicates that the laws remain just on paper.

D* oversees resource management and utilization in the financial planning and analysis division of a multinational corporation, in Delhi. With around 15 years of experience in the industry, she frequently conducts job interviews. While interviewing for leadership roles at her company, D was confronted with an unwritten rule: hire men over women.        

"This is regardless of qualifications and credentials. It is established that no man wants to take instructions from a woman," D said. She struggled to attain a more senior position for herself in this environment.

Unable to leave due to concerns about her age and employability elsewhere, D, as a single mother, was forced to persist in her current job, underscoring the difficult choices many women must make to support their families.

Does Marital Status Affect Men's Job Prospects?

D said women were also judged on their marital status. 

“As a hiring manager, I know there is a preference hierarchy set for women: single, without children, divorced and lastly, married,” she said. 

A February 2024 report by the Centre for Economics & Data Analysis (CEDA) at Ashoka University and The Udaiti Foundation, an NGO that aims to empower women by fostering gender balance & diversity in the workplace, found that marital status significantly influenced the shortlisting of female candidates. 

While 38% of human resources managers considered women’s marital status, only 22% did so for men. 

Three out of the five women who spoke to Article 14 said they had been asked about their marital status and future marriage plans during job interviews. In contrast, most men reported not facing such questions. This violation of privacy was just one of the additional hurdles women had to overcome in the workplace. 

Maternity Leave: A ‘Drain’ on Company Resources

Women face significant challenges returning to work after maternity leave. S, who graduated from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, faced numerous obstacles during her recruitment.

Recruiters frequently told her that it would be difficult to secure her desired job because they assumed she would soon get married and have children. "Most companies assume that if you’re a woman, you will be a financial drain for them," S explained.

The next challenge arose when she became pregnant. “During the first three months, I would go to the office and throw up eight times a day, but I continued working,” S recalled. 

“This has unfortunately been normalized for all working women,” said S. “And while we may receive maternity leave later, we cannot extend it or ask for more, no matter how painful the experience is.”

Five years after the birth of her first child, S decided to switch jobs. She said that during most of her interviews, she was asked invasive questions about the possibility of her having more children. 

"This is the real glass ceiling that complicates women's career advancement," said S.

These hiring practices force women to choose between their careers and personal lives.

Sexual Harassment & Inappropriate Behaviour 

A study published in the Harvard Business Review found that the “degree of comfort” an employee feels within a work environment had a significant impact on longevity at a corporation.

Safe workspaces free from harassment, bullying, and abuse are essential for workers. 

In February 2013, the Indian Parliament passed the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, marking a milestone for women’s safety and equal workforce participation. 

In 2018, the Securities and Exchange Board of India required all listed companies disclose data on sexual harassment cases in their annual reports.

This mandatory disclosure was intended to serve as an accountability measure and enable effective tracking of the law's implementation. However, over a decade later, there is still no centralized repository for this data.

In May 2024, CEDA studied individual reports published by 300 listed companies at the National Stock Exchange and found that 1,160  sexual harassment cases were registered in 2022-23, an increase of over 1,500% in comparison to 2012-13, when only 71 cases were recorded. 

Most women interviewees said they had become desensitised to sexism and inappropriate comments at work.

S said that despite guidelines, women still face constant sexual advances in offices. 

"I work with chief financial officers of top financial firms, yet I am almost afraid to take client meetings alone because men blatantly make sexual advances," said S. 

She said she felt “stuck” between management's expectations to build client relationships and her own safety and comfort. 

"If you complain, it opens a Pandora's box. People will sympathize on the surface but quickly replace you with a male colleague," said S. "Workspaces are not being made comfortable for women at any level.”

When Women Trump Men in Hiring

Unemployment among young and the highly educated is at its highest in 20 years, with those holding graduate degrees faring the worst. This has led to many being overqualified for available jobs.

A 2022 study by Carnegie Mellon University found a stark gender disparity in how overqualification is perceived. For men, being overqualified is often seen negatively, while for women, it is viewed as a sign of dedication. 

However, this perceived dedication often comes at the cost of being underpaid.

"Nowadays, when dealing with overqualified profiles, women are offered the job," said R*, a human resource consultant in Mumbai. "This is because, instead of giving them their appropriate roles or pay, we allow them the option to work from home as an incentive." 

This becomes a significant selling point for many women professionals who are expected to juggle responsibilities at home and work.

Redefining Leadership

"As a feminist scholar, I want to unpack the idea of leadership itself," said Krishna Menon, dean of the school of human studies at Ambedkar University. "The notion that only those at the top of the pyramid, like the Prime Minister, are leaders is deeply patriarchal."

Menon cited countless women, such as ASHA (accredited social health activist) workers, who demonstrate leadership in healthcare in rural India. To her, these women were “true leaders”, yet they are often unrecognized and underpaid. 

She said that it was “crucial” to redefine leadership to include these essential yet overlooked roles. Focusing solely on wages as the metric for success has led to the invisibilization of unpaid labour, as these contributions often provide unaccounted value, she added.

Menon also underscored the importance of women in senior positions mentoring others and advocating for gender sensitization within organizations. 

"Women in leadership must remember they are there because of the collective effort of many,” said Menon. “They should mentor other women and support equitable distribution of household responsibilities. This not only aids in breaking the glass ceiling but also ensures women can sustain their roles without burning out."

In Bangalore, S* continues to juggle household responsibilities and work daily. However, she aspires to be a role model for the next generation, hoping that they break free from gender roles and prejudices. 

*Names changed to protect privacy.

(Shubhangi Derhgawen is a freelance journalist with Deutsche Welle.)

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